New Convention Hotel Project Eyed for Seattle’s Downtown

With an opening tentatively set for 2017, the project would feature a six-story podium that will also contain around 40,000 square feet of retail space, the hotel’s lobby and an affordable housing component. The project aims to fill a void of new convention and meeting space, as the developer claims that around 100 conventions backed out of Seattle due to a lack of openings. The property would cash in on that existing demand and provide a space that would also boost the area’s hospitality stats to boot.

Seattle’s growth has manifested itself in office and multifamily development, along with entertainment, in recent years. With a new sports arena planned and a number of franchises from the top sport associations being courted to relocate to the Emerald City, a new convention center hotel is the latest project to be unveiled.

According to the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, local development company R.C. Hedreen Co. has set its sights on constructing the largest convention hotel project north of San Francisco. The high-rise property would stand 43 stories tall on a city block located between Eighth and Ninth avenues, replacing a Greyhound bus station that is currently slated to move to a new location. The tower would offer guests a 1,500-key hotel, as well as around 150,000 square feet of meeting and ballroom space, making it the second-largest facility of its kind, trailing only the Washington State Convention Center.

With an opening tentatively set for 2017, the project would feature a six-story podium that will also contain around 40,000 square feet of retail space, the hotel’s lobby and an affordable-housing component. The project aims to fill a void of new convention and meeting space, as the developer claims that around 100 conventions backed out of Seattle due to a lack of openings. The property would cash in on that existing demand and provide a space that would also boost the area’s hospitality stats.